Under the agreement announced, Roche will provide funding to UNICEF Switzerland to supply desks, school uniforms, textbooks and other educational material to schools attended by children orphaned by AIDS. The agreement builds on an existing project between Roche and the European Coalition of Positive People (ECPP) to establish day care centres for children in Malawi orphaned by HIV/AIDS, and on the project "Schools for Africa", established by UNICEF in collaboration with the Nelson Mandela Foundation to promote education in 6 African countries, including Malawi. To achieve these educational goals, Roche will provide UNICEF Switzerland with a portion of funds raised through its annual Global Roche Employee AIDS Walk, an employee initiative where monies raised are matched by Roche.

Franz B. Humer, president and CEO of Roche, commented: "We hope that through our partnership with UNICEF, an organisation with a wealth of expertise especially in the area of education, we will be able to combine resources to improve schooling and ultimately opportunities to escape poverty while playing a role in the prevention against HIV/AIDS. It is a great step forward which extends our activities established three years ago by our employees to make a sustainable difference for these Malawian children."

Elsbeth Müller, Executive Director of UNICEF Switzerland, said: "We welcome the steps taken by Roche to support children whose lives have been devastated by AIDS and are pleased - to use our local expertise to increase the quality and availability of education for these orphaned children. Access to primary education is a basic need and right of every child. It provides children them with emotional support and life skills, as well as the perspective of a better future."

Currently, only 26 per cent of the girls and 32 per cent of the boys are in secondary school in Malawi. Evidence has shown that getting and keeping young people in school, particularly girls, can dramatically decrease their vulnerability to HIV/AIDS and that HIV infection rates are at least twice as high among young people who do not finish at least primary school compared to those who do1.

UNICEF's mandate in the collaboration is focused upon primary education for children. ECPP will manage the secondary school education programme for older children who have completed primary school and have the ability to reach higher education. This programme is also funded through the Global Roche Employee AIDS Walk.

Roche's partnership with the ECPP, a UK and Malawi-based non governmental organisation, supports seven orphan centres in Southern Malawi, which provide day care and support learning to approximately 3,000 children and provide life-saving resources such as food, water, clothing and basic healthcare.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are 38.6 million people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide. Sub-Saharan Africa is by far the worst affected area, with over 24 million people currently living with the disease. In Malawi, one of the poorest countries in the world, it is estimated that 15 percent of the 11 million inhabitants are infected with HIV. The virus caused over 80,000 deaths in 2003. Over 700,000 children in Malawi have lost one or both parents to AIDS. As orphans, they are often excluded from education and vocational training because of their poverty.